Word of the Day: home castin'

home castin' (hom kas'-tin) noun. Describes the obviously biased and sometimes frighteningly irrational commentary provided by local broadcasters.

Usage example: Johnny Most was to home castin' what Gary Busey is to, well, everything crazy.

Word history: This term -- which was partially inspired / derived from home cookin' -- was coined last week by BadDave. We were watching a Bulls game and Chicago play-by-play man Neil Funk made a couple pretty funny comments (things along the lines of "Oh, now, that was a travel!), and BadDave finally turned to me and said, "Hooooome castin'." Just like that, a new WotD was born.

The late Johnny Most was the great grandpappy of home castin'. Back in the day, there was nothing quite like listening to Most lay absolute waste to a Celtics opponent. And in Most's eyes, the officials were included in the long list of "Celtics opponent." In fact, everybody not wearing green and white was The Enemy. Jack McCallum's book, Unfinished Business, has some great Johnny stories and describes how a bumpy cab ride or lousy room service on the road would cause him to vomit hate onto whomever his beloved Celtics were playing on a given night.

Here's some classic Most for you:




Tommy Heinsohn, himself a former Celtic turned Celtics broadcaster, followed in Most's footsteps. I've already covered Heinsohn's insanity -- If you're wondering whether Tommy would skin you alive, eat your insides, and then wear your skin as a tuxedo to his daugther's wedding, the answer is "yes" -- but here's some video:





Lest you think that the insanity is limited to Boston-based broadcasters, here's a mini-meltdown from Matt Bullard:


Another great Bullard moment: tea bags always make you feel better!

Since Neil Funk helped inspire this word, here's some video of him and Stacey King providing a nice little scouting report on Kwame Brown:


Home castin' isn't limited to the booth, either. Watch these Cleveland newscasters freak out after a LeBron James buzzer beater:


Update! Because Basketbawful reader JustinS brought him up, here's Portland's color guy, Mike Rice, screaming directly at an official to check the replay:


Here's another great Rice moment: "Turn down the commercials too, you asshole!"

Update! From Basketbawful reader Viscant: "My favorite homecasting of the year involves the Bucks broadcaster with an audible 'MISS IT!' and then begging the refs to check the replay. Good for a laugh."